Meet Mike in Chantilly!
Mike will appear at the Capital Remodel and Garden Show on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 25-26, at the Dulles Expo Center; Chantilly, Va.
He’ll speak at noon and 6 p.m. on Saturday and at noon and 2 p.m. on Sunday. Details are at the Capital Remodel and Garden Show website.
Rare and unusual orchid auction on Sunday!
Looking to get out of the house and see some amazing plants in bloom? The National Capital Orchid Society will hold their 39th annual orchid auction on Sunday, Feb. 12, at Behnke’s Nursery in Beltsville. Details are on The National Capital Orchid Society website.
It’s free and open to the public, and more than 300 rare and unusual orchids will be on display beginning at 10 a.m. and then auctioned off beginning at 11 a.m. You don’t have to bid; you can just immerse yourself in the orchids — unless something catches your eye that might make the perfect gift this coming Tuesday. Hint, hint.
Tulips send a stronger message than roses*
Valentine’s Day draws near. Are you ready to send the correct message on Tuesday?
Red roses do symbolize “love” in general in The Floral Code — the “Language of Flowers” that was immensely popular in the Victorian era, when manners and station often prevented direct talk of romance and symbolism was the only socially acceptable way to express one’s feelings.
But red tulips specifically mean, “I love you.” (Which is clever — what’s more “innocent” than giving someone a little bouquet of tulips in the spring?)
And basic red tulips are reliable re-bloomers, so if you buy them as live plants growing in a pot (which you see in every garden center and supermarket at this time of year), you can plant the bulbs in the ground this fall and aim for everlasting love! Scroll down for the details in a special bonus section at the end of this week’s Plots …
(*And probably cost a lot less.)
Yellow roses are not a good idea outside of Texas
- White roses symbolize chastity — which is perhaps not your intended point on Feb. 14.
- Peach roses mean “sympathy,” which might be what you’ll need, but don’t ask for it up front.
- Yellow roses might be the worst; that color translates to “let’s just be friends.” Oy!
- Oh, and don’t worry if your red roses have a few thorns; the more thorns, the more passionate your unspoken declaration of love.
The science of cut flower preservation
Tired of your Valentine’s Day roses losing their luster too quickly? Forget pennies (a good basic idea, but their copper is not soluble in water) or the potentially perilous powder in those nasty little packets. Here’s the real deal, culled from published journal articles on cut flower preservation.
- Thoroughly wash the vase you’ll use.
- Mix one can of non-diet Sprite, 7-Up or other lemon-lime soda with three cans of water.
- Add a few drops of vinegar.
- Warm this mixture to around 100 degrees (no hotter).
- Remove all leaves below what will be the water line.
- Re-cut the stems at an angle and quickly place them in the still-warm water, but display the vase in the coolest spot in your home.
Get it all right and the flowers will look fabulous for two weeks!
And how about a little vodka for insurance?
An article that appeared a few years back in The International Journal of Biotechnology Research taught me a lot about Valentine’s Day cut flowers; namely that (just like many of us) sugar and alcohol are key to keeping things fresh.
The researchers confirmed that despite no longer having their roots, cut flowers still need sugar for food. They also need squeaky-clean water with a low Ph balance, an antimicrobial agent to keep the water clean — and a little vodka.
Adding a few drops of vodka was originally thought to kill microbes in the water, but these researchers found that it instead (or also) prevented the release of ethylene gas, the natural ripening agent produced by fruits such as bananas. A little bit of vodka stops cut flowers from “ripening,” and helps them last even longer.
Website extra: Planting your potted tulips
First, a warning: This will not work for a lot of potted bulbs. The fancier the flower, the more likely that they’re one-hit wonders. But dirt-basic red tulips are some of the most reliable spring bulbs at naturally returning year after year. (I inherited a line of basic red tulips that have reliably returned every year since we bought the house — in 1985!) Keep that in mind when you’re buying new bulbs this fall.)
Now, whether cut or potted, you want to pick Valentine’s Day plants whose flower heads are tightly closed — displaying that classic “tulip” shape. Take a pass on tulips with wide-open petals — those flowers won’t last more than another day or two. Display potted or cut tulips in normal room light (not direct sun) in a cool room, away from any sources of heat. The cooler the room, the longer the flowers will last. Water sparingly.
More tips for potted plants:
- After the flowers fade, cut off the very top of the flower stalk with scissors (just below the little bulge that would have become a seed head).
- Ditch any decorative foil and put the pot in your brightest, sunniest window (although direct sun fades flowers, it “feeds” the green leaves). Give the plant a little natural food, like an inch of compost or worm castings on top of the soil. Water when the pot feels light.
- Or place the pot outside in a sunny spot and leave it out as long as the nights stay above freezing. (Bring it back inside temporarily when and if nights get freezing cold or ice is predicted.)
- Outside or on a sunny windowsill, feed the bulbs again around May 15. Let the green leaves grow and absorb sunshine until their color fades, then just bring the whole pot back inside and put it in a cool basement or closet. No water, no food, no light, no attention. Let them be fully dormant.
- Then remove the bulbs from the pot and plant them outdoors in the ground this fall — ideally right after Halloween. If you properly fed and “sunned” the leaves, they should have absorbed enough energy to bloom again next spring and every spring thereafter, becoming a symbol of everlasting love.
